But the Basha would send no expedition; he permitted all and
sundry to go as volunteers, but gave out publicly that "it more concerned
him to defend well his own State than to interfere in the affairs of
others." He even went farther than this, and when a number of Moriscoes,
who were settled at Algiers, embarked a quantity of arms for transportation
to the coast of Andalusia, he put an embargo on the vessels and would not
allow them to sail, saying "he would never suffer the exportation of what
was so necessary for the defence of his own dominions." At last, after much
importunity, he consented "that all such as had two of a sort--as muskets,
swords, or other weapons--might, if they thought fit, send over one of
them, provided they did it gratis and purely for the cause' sake; but he
would never allow any of them to strip themselves of their arms for lucre."
Ali, being now firmly established at Algiers, took up arms against the
neighbouring State of Tunis. For long years now the King of Tunis had been
protected by the Spaniards--a nation whom the Sea-wolves always held in
singular abhorrence as the most bigoted of the Christian Powers, and who
held in thrall many of their co-religionists. Hamid, son of Hassan, who now
ruled in Tunis, had reduced that unfortunate State to anarchy bordering on
rebellion, and the whole country, torn by internal feud, was ready to rise
against him. The Goletta was in the hands of the Spaniards; Carouan, an
inland town, had set up a king of its own, while the maritime towns passed
from the domination of the Sea-wolves to that of the Christians, and from
the Christians back to the Sea-wolves, according to which party happened to
be the stronger for the time being.
Pages:
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362